Launching

How to spell launching

9 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce launching

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does launching mean?

1. verbIn the act of setting something in motion: a boat into water, a rocket into the air, or a new venture into operation.
2. nounThe occasion or process of formally introducing or sending something off.

Launching in a sentence

• verb

  The company is launching a new product range in the spring.

• noun

  The launching of the new bridge attracted a large crowd.

• verb

  The crew spent the morning launching the lifeboat from the slipway.

• noun

  A successful launching depends on careful planning and timing.

Where does launching come from?

Language of origin: French

The base verb launch comes from the Old North French word lanchier, a regional form of lancier, meaning literally 'to throw a lance' or 'to hurl'. That verb grew out of the Late Latin lanceare, 'to wield a lance', which in turn rests on the Latin noun lancea, a light spear or javelin. English picked it up in the 1300s, at first carrying the violent sense of hurling a weapon, and only later softening into the gentler ideas of setting a boat into the water, sending off a rocket, or starting an enterprise. The very same lancea root sits inside the everyday word 'lance', which is a useful memory hook: the surprising spelling trap here is the 'au', since the word sounds like 'lawnch' yet is written launch. Adding the regular -ing ending simply turns the action into its ongoing or noun form, with no change to the troublesome root.

How the word is built

• launch (from lancea: a light spear or lance)
• -ing (present participle / gerund suffix)